A retired traffic warden who dubbed herself ''gangster granny'' on Facebook began a secret double life as a drug dealer
Maureen Thompson, from Scholes, Wigan, stored a stash of drugs on a baking tray and in a Tupperware box in her kitchen.
The 61-year-old started her criminal enterprise after developing a severe cocaine habit.
She kept a debtors list after agreeing to help her dealer sell to addicts to pay off her own debts.
The mother-of-one began snorting cocaine after she was forced to quit booking motorists due to injury.
She was held in a drugs bust at her apartment on February 12 2020 following a tip off.
Officers found a total of 47 wraps of cocaine - some hidden in a sock in a plastic box - and a white binbag containing 383 grams of cutting agents used to bulk up the drugs.
A Warren James gift bag was seized with number of plastic wraps of white powder inside and a piece folded silver plastic of white powder was found stuck with blutac and magnets to the underside of a kitchen drawer.
Thompson's mobile was also examined and found to contain messages relating to drug sales.
The debtors 'tick list' was found in a notebook and she was also put in charge of manning a drug deal hotline. Experts valued the haul at up to £1,335.
Thompson initially denied being a drug dealer and claimed not to have known where the drugs came from. But in the police station she was found to be wearing a sock which was a match to the other which contained drugs.
In a subsequent statement she confessed: ''I was in substantial debt to a drug dealer and I could not pay those debts so I agreed to let the dealer use my account to deposit and withdraw drugs money.
''My debt continued to incur interest and I agreed to store drugs and operate a drugs phone for him. I was a traffic enforcement officer for 28 years in Bolton and I had a serious accident which forced me into retirement.
''The medication pain relief I was taking made me spiral out of control and I started using Class A drugs.''
At Bolton Crown Court, Thompson admitted possessing cocaine with intent to supply and acquiring criminal property and was sentenced to two years jail suspended for two years.
She was also ordered to complete a 12-month drug rehabilitation programme, 30 rehabilitation days and was ordered to wear an electronic tag for four months as part of a 7pm and 7am curfew.
In mitigation, defence counsel Joshua Bowker, said: ''Background reports on Miss Thompson paint a very different picture of her. This was offending committed after a protracted period of misfortune and misery resulting in control of her own life spiralling away from her.
"Throughout her entire life there has been a significant amount of trauma with multiple incidents of significant events happening in her life which had have a great effect on her.
"There was a campaign of domestic violence she was subjected to for many years by more than one partner. She is now living with her son and that face is a more establishing influence on her.
''She held her employment until through no fault of her own for health reasons it came to an end in the mid 2010s.
''Although there was frequent alcohol abuse connected to the domestic violence, the loss of her employment, the stability and pride that it gave, led to increasing amounts of alcohol being consumed and prolific use of cocaine.
''It led to debt and this offending occurring. This is offending out of character for her. Her use of cocaine is now on a much smaller scale but it is still happening as she's an addict.
''Her intention will be to completely wean herself off that drug use. She poses a low risk of re-offending.''
Sentencing Thompson Judge Martin Walsh told her: ''This court frequently has people appearing in front of it whose lives have been utterly devastated and destroyed by their addictions to drugs.
''Communities are blighted by the activity of those who resort to crime in order to feed their habits and those who profit out of the creation of such misery for personal financial gain can expect to receive significant prison sentences.
''But I have regard to your basis of plea and reports about you. I am just about persuaded about your circumstances to pass a suspended sentence. But I want to make it absolutely crystal clear - you have escaped going to prison by the skin of your teeth.''
Thompson will face a Proceeds of Crime hearing later. She will have to undergo a review in two months where the judge will check on her progress.
